UK Government Unveiling How Individual Taxpayer Money is Spent

Britain's government is set to unveil how it spends the tax revenue collected from 24 million people as it seeks to launch a "revolution in tax transparency".

UK Chancellor George Osborne has pushed through plans, first announced in his 2012 budget, to deliver an Annual Tax Summary to millions of Britons which will lay out a breakdown of how much tax each person has paid and how it was spent on welfare, transport, health and education.

According to government figures, there are almost 30 million taxpayers in the UK but not everyone will receive a summary. However, the Treasury insisted that those who do not receive a summary can use HM Revenue & Custom's tax calculator to get similar information.

While the government is touting it as "a revolution in transparency" the Trades Union Congress (TUC) called it "party political propaganda masquerading as neutral information".

"It's about people getting information," said Osborne.

"This is about people knowing where their money is going and how much tax they're paying. I think it is going to help as a country the debate we have about living within our means."

TUC's general secretary Frances O'Grady said: "The chancellor is relying on the fact that many people think spending called welfare all goes to the unemployed."

"This is softening us up to a major cut to the welfare state safety net to which we all should contribute so that it is there if we need it."